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In a conversation with TOI, post his latest song Dil Ka Jo Haal Hai from Besharam, composed by Lalit Pandit, he talks about his struggling days, being RD Burman's discovery and why he believes his wife is his lucky mascot. Excerpts:
Let's talk about your childhood?
I was born and brought up in Kanpur. My father was initially a businessman who owned coal mines, but once the government took over the mines, he got into service and we lived hand-to-mouth. My oldest brother, who is ten years older to me, took up a job at the ordnance factory at 15 and supported the house. I had decided that if I became something in life, I would look after my elder brother. So, when I bought my house in Mumbai, I bought a house for him too, in Jabalpur, where he lives. I was only interested in music and from a young age, I would play several instruments. From Class X, I started singing for Chatterjee Orchestra and supported myself. By the time I was in college, I was even contributing at home. My brothers were settled and because I had no responsibilities, I could gamble. From the beginning, I have always done everything with a lot of planning and I had one dream that I would give my parents the life a star's parents have.
I knew a sound person, Baitulla Siddiqui, who lived in Kanpur but worked in Mumbai and so I wrote a letter to him telling him that I was coming to Mumbai and landed here.
How did you get your first break?
When my train landed, Siddiqui sahab came to receive me and took me to stay with him in Dharavi, which is where he lived. Despite the love they gave me, I could not handle the living conditions there and decided to go back to Kanpur. My sister was married in Mumbai. She came to know that I was here and I moved in with her for a month, during which I would visit studios of music directors. Obviously, nothing happened and I took up a small job I got as a store keeper for `365 per month with the help of Ghulam Mustafa sahab, who also I knew through a Kanpur connection. I missed my mother everyday, but would call her to say I was fine so that she would not be worried about me. I would bunk office everyday in the afternoon to go visit RD Burman's office and lost my job in the bargain. I knew Ravindra Jain sahab through a neighbour in Kanpur and he was the only music director whose house I used to visit. When I lost my job, I went to him and told him that and he kept me as a helper.
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Since his visibility was very little, I was of help to him for his odd jobs like taking him out for a walk at 5 in the morning and lived with him in his house. At that time he was single. Dada liked me and got used to me and I lived with him for a year-and-a- half. But it was clear to me that I would not get a break as a singer as Dada did not have confidence in me. But I had learnt by just sitting in his music sessions and by just being in his company. While I was there, I would often go and meet Pancham da, who along with Jagjit ji, gave me my first break.
That was the era of Kishore Kumar. How did he take you?
That time it was impossible for him to approve a new singer. I had visited Pancham da for six months and everyday he would say, 'Come tomorrow.' I had decided to go back to Kanpur, finish my studies, take up a job, get married, make my wife sit on the Vespa behind me and take my mother for tirath. Living in Mumbai, I started dreaming of Kanpur. I went and met Pancham da for one last time telling him that I was going back and that he should just listen to my recording once for my satisfaction before I left. Somehow he agreed. It was a really bad recording, but a johri can judge. Pacham da asked me to stay back for a few more days but did not say anything more. I had, by now, moved into a Wadala colony, a 25-minute-walk from the station. It was a government chawl and I had no phone, so I had given the number of Major Natkar, who lived in Mahim and was known to help strugglers by taking down messages for them. I would call him everyday to find out if there were any messages for me, but there were none. Fifteen days later, I had high fever that lasted three days, when I did not call Major Natkar. But Pancham da was trying to reach me. So when I called Major Natkar after three days, he started abusing me as I had not called on the three most important days of my life. My heart sank and for the first time, I took a taxi with whatever money I had and landed at Pancham da's house. Pancham da had a cook Manu da, who was also his right-hand man and was known to shut the door on the face of strangers, who would often land up there to meet Pancham da. But this time, when I rang the bell, Manu da welcomed me and said in Bangla, 'Where are you, yaar?' I recorded my first song with Pancham da and sang for Dev sahab's son for Anand Aur Anand, while Kishore da sang for Dev sahab. It was my first duet with Kishore da. I still remember Kishore da telling me 'Tum bahut sur mein gaate ho.' I became very close to Pancham da, but that made people around him jealous and they concocted a story about me to him. They told him that I had sold one of his tunes to his competitor, which, of course, was far from being true.
Later, Pancham da came to know it was not true as, obviously, no competitor had made that song, but it was too late as Pancham da had already distanced himself from me by then. The film did not work and my career finished before it started. My father went into depression and died shortly due to it. He could never see my success. My mother moved in with me after he died and lived with me, till she died three years back. I am still most attached to my mom and even now, when I look back in life, my worst years were the four years I struggled without her in Mumbai.
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How did you meet your wife Sumati?
Her father was a senior Navy person and they lived at Cuffe Parade, whereas I was a struggling singer. We met at a common friend's place, where I was performing. She was the first person I met who not only knew my flop song, but was also my fan. She was eleven years younger to me and an amateur singer. Her father was dreaming about her becoming a singer and requested me to guide her thinking me to be a senior. But he forgot to tell me that I was to guide her only in music. She was so silly that in just 15 days, she had decided that her future was with me. They would brainwash her quoting Kishore da's three marriages, but she was adamant. Even though I was a struggling singer, I thought in my mind, 'Wah, they think I can become Kishore Kumar!' Sumati was keen to get married but I could not, as I did not even have a place. From the day she had entered my life, things just worked out for me. I had applied for a government 1BHK flat under the artist quota and got rejected, but I took Sumati with me and she was so lucky for me that they allocated the flat to me that day. That gave me hope and we got married. Our first son was conceived on our wedding night itself, but that put me into more depression as I now had to support a family, but did not have work. That is when Anand Milind gave me my break in Baaghi. After that, I never looked back.
Did you go back to meet RD Burman after you became successful?
I am the only singer who was discovered by Pancham da. He may have sent me away from him when he was at his peak, but two years before he died, he had no work and his house that was always full of so many people with music, stopped getting its visitors. I was at the peak of my career and would go to Pancham da during this time, as I knew he had no one around him. He would be sitting in the balcony of his first floor Santacruz flat all alone and would be irritated seeing me. I could see that he did not want anyone to come. This was the time he was doing his last album 1942 A Love Story. There would be just Pancham da, his mother in the inside room lying in a coma and, of course, good old Manu da. Seeing him like that I decided that while I was at my peak, I would secure myself financially and started investing all my money into property that I continue doing till this day.
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